Five great painters who did art in times of plague

A close-up view of Edvard Munch's 'Self-Portrait After The Spanish Flu' (1919).

Art has always prevailed, even in times of pestilence and hardship. The Black Death, also known as the Great Plague, for instance, wiped out scores of people. Peaking in Europe in the mid-14th century, it circled the globe and recurred as outbreaks in various corners of the world for hundreds of years.

Then there was the flu - Spanish, Asian, swine - you name it. Indeed, humanity is no stranger to disease and outbreaks.